Newsline - March 24, 2000

On 24
March, the last official day of campaigning, acting President
Vladimir Putin appealed to voters to participate in the 26
March presidential elections. Putin told nationwide
television viewers "We are electing not only a head of state
but also a commander in chief." He added, "We are electing a
president whose task is not only to improve the economy,
revive the country's prestige and restore its leading role in
the world, but also to bring stability and prosperity to
everyone," according to ITAR-TASS. Mikhail Delyagin, director
of the Institute for Globalization Issues, has predicted that
Putin is assured of victory in the first round of voting if
more than 65 percent of eligible voters take part in the
election, "Kommersant-Daily" reported on 23 March. JAC

...PAYS LAST-MINUTE VISIT TO LUZHKOV

Putin met with Moscow
Mayor Yurii Luzhkov on 23 March. A longtime foe of the
Kremlin, Luzhkov recently announced his support for Putin's
candidacy (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 16 March 2000). Putin
praised Luzhkov's management of the capital city, noting
"what has been done and is now being done in Moscow evokes my
respect and even envy," ITAR-TASS reported. Sergei Markov, an
analyst with the Moscow-based Institute of Political Studies,
told "The Moscow Times" on 24 March that Putin is trying to
secure a first-round victory by wooing Moscow's large
electorate. He added that "Luzhkov is under a colossal
threat. He could be removed from his post at any time after
the elections." JAC

PUTIN PROMISES THAT REGIONS WILL TOE THE FEDERAL LINE...

Addressing a meeting of cabinet ministers on 23 March, acting
President Putin declared that the understandings achieved at
his recent meetings with the leaders of Tatarstan and
Bashkortostan are "a clear signal to Russia and the world
community that despite some disagreements, the federal
government and territories have importants priorities in
common." He added that a favorable investment climate
requires "a clearly defined and general constitutional system
throughout the country." JAC

...AS BASHKORTOSTAN CEDES SOME OF ITS POWERS...

Acting
President Putin and Bashkortostan President Murtaza Rakhimov
signed an agreement on 23 March in Ufa in which Bashkortostan
agreed to funnel all money through the federal treasury and
relinquish its right to collect federal taxes and directly
finance federal programs, RFE/RL's Ufa correspondent reported
(see "RFE/RL Russian Federation Report," 23 March 2000). The
agreement also enumerates the conditions for the center to
provide financial aid to Bashkortostan, according to
Interfax. Commenting on his visit to Ufa and Kazan, Putin
said that the leaders of Bashkortostan and Tatarstan express
their readiness "to function in the framework of a single
Russian law." According to "Segodnya" on 24 March, Putin said
that President Shaimiev is ready to sign an agreement similar
to that signed by Bashkortostan. That agreement, the
newspaper concluded, "can be considered a major victory for
the Kremlin." JAC

YAVLINSKII SUBJECT TO LAST-MINUTE ATTACKS IN MEDIA...

Russian
Public Television reported on 23 March that Yabloko leader
and presidential candidate Grigorii Yavlinskii has been
spending money from foreign sources on his presidential
campaign in contravention of Russian law. The television
station, which receives state funding and is considered close
to Boris Berezovskii, suggested that Yavlinskii was receiving
funds from two German foundations, the Friedrich Ebert and
Friedrich Naumann Foundations, and alleged that he also
received money from Media Most head Vladimir Gusinskii. The
same day, "Nezavisimaya gazeta" suggested that the large
number of recent newspaper articles about Yavlinskii must
have been "purchased" and therefore Yavlinskii has spent
considerably more than the amount in his campaign fund.
"Nezavisimaya gazeta" receives funding from Boris
Berezovskii's LogoVAZ group. JAC

...AS YABLOKO SUPPORTERS SAY VIOLENCE USED AGAINST THEM

Meanwhile, on 22 March, masked men raided Yabloko
headquarters in Noginsk, Moscow Oblast, and beat Mikhail
Smirnov, the head of a local opposition newspaper,
"Samoupravlenie," "Segodnya" reported on 24 March. Yabloko
spokesman Sergei Loktionov said that authorities in Tula,
Belgorod, and Petrozavodsk detained Yavlinskii supporters who
were trying to hand out campaign literature. JAC

CAMPAIGN HEAD SAYS PUTIN TO RESTORE RUSSIA'S GLORY

In an
interview with "Vek" on 24 March, Dmitrii Medvedev, manager
for acting President Putin's election campaign, said that
with Putin at the helm, Russia has a chance to become a
superpower again, according to Interfax. When asked whether
Putin could become a Russian Napoleon, Medvedev noted that
Napoleon managed to consolidate the French but commented that
Putin's personality is the antithesis of Napoleon's. JAC

KREMLIN PURGE BEGINS EVEN BEFORE ELECTION

Igor
Shabdurasulov, first deputy head of the presidential
administration, announced on 23 March that he will resign his
post soon after the presidential elections. "Kommersant-
Daily" reported the next day that earlier Shabdurasulov had
been excluded from the "unofficial election staff" in the
Kremlin, in part because he "performed poorly" at promoting
the pro-Kremlin movement Unity during last December's State
Duma election. Shabdurasulov reportedly predicted that the
movement would capture no more than 5-6 percent of the total
vote. Shabdurasulov said on 24 March that he will resign in
order to give Putin a "complete carte blanche with respect to
cadres." JAC

STOCK MARKET JUBILIANT AT EXPECTED PUTIN WIN

The benchmark
RTS-Interfax index closed at 235.99 on 23 March, a 6.11
percent rise over the previous day, according to Reuters.
Traders cited the near certainty of acting President Putin's
election victory as well as a recent Central Bank report that
gold reserves are at their highest level since the August
1998 financial crisis. Also encouraging for the market was
news of January's foreign trade surplus, which rose 135
percent compared with the same month the previous year (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," 23 March 2000). JAC

SECURITY MEASURES INCREASED IN CHECHNYA

The Russian military
on 24 March imposed security precautions in Chechnya,
including a temporary ban on the use of private vehicles, in
the hope of preventing anticipated terrorist acts by Chechen
fighters in the runup to the 26 March Russian presidential
poll, AFP reported. The previous day, Russian military
commander Lieutenant General Ivan Babichev told journalists
that Chechens who have lost their identity papers will be
issued on request with papers empowering them to cast their
ballots, Interfax reported. Russian armed forces spokesman
Lieutenant General Vladimir Kozhemyakin told ITAR-TASS on 23
March that some 28 percent of the Russian servicemen
currently deployed in Chechnya have already voted. LF

MOSCOW DENIES CHECHEN DISPLACED PERSONS WITHOUT FOOD

Russian
Minister for Emergency Situations Sergei Shoigu and Federal
Migration Service head Sergei Khetagurov have both denied
that displaced persons from Chechnya now in Ingushetia are no
longer receiving food, Reuters and ITAR-TASS reported. In a
telegram to acting President Putin on 20 March, Ingushetia's
President Ruslan Aushev had claimed that the distribution of
food to displaced persons in Ingushetia had been discontinued
(see "RFE/RL Newsline," 21 March 2000). LF

MILITARY PROSECUTOR DENIES RUSSIAN OFFICERS SOLD ARMS TO
CHECHENS...

Russia's Deputy Military Prosecutor General Yurii
Yakovlev told Interfax on 22 March that film footage claiming
that Russian army officers stationed in Krasnodar had sold
arms, including GRAD missiles, to the Chechens dated from
1997 (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 22 March 2000). Independent NTV
had broadcast that footage the previous day. Yakovlev added
that the three officers in question had been arrested for
attempting to sell 180 missiles to residents of Abkhazia. LF

...AS BANKERS ARRESTED IN CONNECTION WITH CHECHEN MONEY-
LAUNDERING

Three leading officials of Moscow's
Trastkreditbank were detained on 22 March and will be charged
next week with illegal financial activities, Interfax
reported. All three detainees are women. The bank is alleged
to have channeled some $20 million to unnamed Chechens for
the purchase of weapons and to have been controlled by "a
Chechen mob" since November 1999. LF

RUSSIA, U.S. PUSH JOINTLY FOR UN REFORM

Ahead of a UN
General Assembly committee meeting on 23 March, Russia and
the U.S. issued a joint statement saying they are to
intensify cooperation aimed at promoting "broad agreement on
practical ways and means" to reform the UN. Specifically,
according to Russian ambassador to the UN Sergei Lavrov, that
cooperation will include reforming the UN budgets for regular
operations and peacekeeping missions. However, AP reported
that following the joint announcement, Lavrov made a
statement "implicitly criticizing" Washington for failing to
meet its financial obligations vis-a-vis the international
organization. The U.S., which owes the UN some $926 million
in dues and arrears, is arguing that its contributions should
be reduced. It is currently required to foot some 30 percent
of the bill for peacekeeping operations, while Russia's
contribution totals 1.8 percent. JC

ONE YEAR ON, RUSSIA SLAMS NATO FOR YUGOSLAV CAMPAIGN

In an
article published in "Nezavisimaya gazeta" on 23 March, one
day before the first anniversary of NATO's bombing campaign
in Yugoslavia, Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov argued
that the operation only aggravated interethnic tensions in
Kosova and led to the "purging" of most non-Albanians there.
Because the Kosova crisis remains unresolved, he added, "the
threat of a Balkan tragedy becomes more and more realistic."
Reuters quoted General Leonid Ivashov, head of the Defense
Ministry's international relations department, as saying the
same day that the UN's chief administrator in Kosova, Bernard
Kouchner, is actively seeking to help secure independence for
Kosova. "Thanks to him and some NATO politicians," Ivashov
commented, "the Albanians believe independence is guaranteed
to them." Also on 23 March, the Russian Foreign Ministry
issued a statement saying Russia will not send any police to
Kosova as part of a special UN force for the province (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," 23 March 2000). JC

ZYUGANOV COMPLAINS PUBLIC TELEVISION INSUFFICIENTLY
CONTROLLED

Communist Party leader and presidential candidate
Gennadii Zyuganov said on 23 March that if he were elected,
he would establish a state television channel and introduce
supervisory councils on television channels, Interfax
reported. He said that "there is no state television in the
Russia" because "[business magnate Boris] Berezovskii
dictates his conditions to Channel One [Russian Public
Television]." He added that the entourage of former President
Boris Yeltsin sets the tone at Channel Two (Russian
Television). JAC

FRENCH COMMUNISTS SNUB RUSSIAN COMRADES ON EVE OF ELECTION

In a resolution passed on 23 March, the Presidium of the
Russian Communist Party's Central Committee expressed
"surprise" that the French Communist Party has not invited
its Russian counterpart to attend its 30th congress in Paris.
That decision, according to the resolution, is a "stab in the
back" at a critical time, namely, as the presidential
campaign draws to a close in Russia. At the same time,
Russia's Communists note that there are differences between
the leaderships of the two parties but stress that this must
not interfere with "a comradely dialogue." JC

'AND THE WINNERS ARE....'

"Segodnya" reported on 23 March
that Russia's Internet Academy has bestowed its first annual
Intel Internet awards for the best Russian Websites based on
criteria such as visual design, structure, and navigation.
Winner of the main prize was , which is
an online auction site. Ekho Moskvy's Website
() won an award in the category of
"traditional media on the internet." The Website,
won the prize for information and
politics. Other winners were the Website for the Hermitage
Museum in St. Petersburg () and Sport
segodnya (). JAC

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT, PREMIER VISIT WOUNDED KARABAKH LEADER

Robert Kocharian and Aram Sargsian on 23 March visited
Arkadii Ghukasian, president of the unrecognized Nagorno-
Karabakh Republic, who is recovering in a Yerevan hospital
from gun wounds received during the unsuccessful attack on
his life early on 22 March, Interfax reported. Ghukasian's
brother Areg and one of the surgeons who operated on him both
pronounced his condition satisfactory, RFE/RL's Yerevan
bureau reported. In Stepanakert, police discovered "illegal
weapons and ammunition" in the homes of former Defense
Minister Samvel Babayan and his brother Karen, both of whom
were taken into custody on 22 March on suspicion of
involvement in the bid to assassinate Ghukasian. Karabakh
First Deputy Prosecutor-General Aramais Avagian told Noyan
Tapan on 23 March that no charges have yet been brought
against any of the several dozen detainees. LF

FORMER AZERBAIJANI GENERALS CALL FOR NEW WAR OVER KARABAKH

Speaking at a press conference in Baku on 24 March, former
senior Azerbaijani Defense Ministry officials argued that
since all attempts to resolve the Karabakh conflict
peacefully have failed, a new attempt should be made to win
back control of Nagorno-Karabakh and the adjacent currently
Armenian-controlled territories by force, Turan reported.
Former Defense Minister Tajaddin Mehtiev argued that it would
be possible to inflict a military defeat on Armenia if the
Azerbaijani leadership and opposition close ranks. LF

AZERBAIJAN QUERIES LEGALITY OF OIL TARIFF CONCESSION...

Azerbaijani observers are puzzled over the implications of
President Heidar Aliev's statement in Tbilisi on 22 March
that Azerbaijan has agreed to use its profits to augment the
tariff that Georgia will receive from the transit of Caspian
oil, Turan reported on 23 March. The agency quoted
unidentified experts as suggesting that the legal owner of
the Baku-Ceyhan pipeline would pay a certain amount (for
example, 12 cents) to Georgia and Azerbaijan per barrel of
oil carried via these countries. A concession by Azerbaijan
to Georgia such as Aliyev hinted at would mean that Azerbaijan
would be paid not 12, but 8 cents, while Georgia would
receive not 12, but 16 cents. LF

...AND OPPOSITION SLAMS IT...

Opposition party leaders have
criticized Aliev's announcement, Turan reported on 23 March.
National Independence Party Chairman Etibar Mamedov pointed
out that "the fees for oil, the oil pipeline, and oil
transportation are not Heidar Aliev's property that he can
present to his friend.... This is a strategic issue and it
cannot be resolved in a hurry." Musavat Party Chairman Isa
Gambar similarly argued that "infringing upon one's own
interests in favor of the other side is an incorrect decision
from both the political and economic viewpoints." Both Gambar
and Azerbaijan Popular Front Party first deputy chairman Ali
Kerimov termed Aliev's decision as yet another example of his
placing personal interests above those of the state. LF

...AS GEORGIA CALCULATES PROFITS

Gia Chanturia, the chairman
of the Georgian International Oil Corporation, told a news
conference in Tbilisi on 23 March that the transit of the
"main" Caspian oil via Georgia will bring in transit fees of
$52.5 million annually, which will be equal to 10 percent of
the state budget, Caucasus Press reported. He said that at
the initial stage (2004-2008) Georgia will receive 12 cents
for 1 barrel or 89 cents for 1 ton of oil; at the second
stage, (2009-2018) it will get 14 cents for 1 barrel or 1.4
dollars for 1 ton and at the third stage (2019-2043) 17 cents
and more for 1 barrel or1.26 dollars for 1 ton. An
Azerbaijani official representing the Azerbaijan
International Operating Company, the only Western consortium
currently exporting Azerbaijani oil, said President Aliev's
concession was motivated by the desire to expedite the start
of construction of the Baku-Ceyhan pipeline. LF

AZERBAIJAN, GEORGIA SIGN FURTHER COOPERATION AGREEMENTS

Addressing the Georgian parliament on 23 March, President
Aliyev characterized relations between his country and Georgia
as "a strategic partnership" and "really friendly and
mutually beneficial," ITAR-TASS reported. Several bilateral
agreements were signed during Aliev's two-day state visit to
Tbilisi, including on the exchange of information and on
cooperation in the social protection of the population and
between the two countries' Justice Ministries. LF

GEORGIAN MILITARY CLARIFIES RETURN HOME OF KFOR CONTINGENT

Members of the Georgian peacekeeping contingent serving with
KFOR in Kosova were sent back to Tbilisi for insubordination
before their eight-month tour of duty was complete,
"Segodnya" reported on 22 March. The newspaper claimed that
the Georgian troops had refused to accept orders from the
Turkish officers under whom they served and had locked
themselves in their barracks and declared a hunger-strike.
Georgian military officials admitted that the Georgian
Defense Ministry has failed to pay on time the $600 per month
to which the men were entitled. A Georgian Defense Ministry
spokesman denied last week that Georgian peacekeepers have
returned home because of friction with the Turkish contingent
(see "RFE/RL Newsline," 20 March 2000). LF

LAST GEORGIAN DESERTERS SURRENDER

All the 60 or so Georgian
servicemen who deserted from their unit at the Kodjori
training camp earlier this month have now returned, Caucasus
Press reported on 24 March, citing "Rezonansi" (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," 15 March 200). LF

SUSPECT ARRESTED IN MURDER OF ABKHAZ VICE PREMIER

Russian
and Abkhaz police recently arrested a man on suspicion of
involvement in the September 1995 assassination of Abkhaz
Deputy Prime Minister Yurii Voronov, "Kommersant-Daily"
reported on 23 March (see "OMRI Daily Digest," 13 September
1995). The suspect, named as Albert Tarba, is believed to
have acted on instructions from Georgian intelligence with
the aim of destabilizing the internal situation in Abkhazia.
LF

KYRGYZ DEMAND ARRESTED OPPOSITION LEADER'S RELEASE...

Some
250 people demonstrated on 23 March outside the Kyrgyz
Security Ministry to demand the release of opposition Ar-
Namys Party Chairman Feliks Kulov, RFE/RL's Bishkek bureau
reported. Kulov was arrested the previous day on suspicion of
participating in illegal activities by members of the Kalkhan
anti-terror squad while he headed the Security Ministry in
1997-1998 (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 28 April 1999 and 23 March
2000), according to Reuters. Speaking at a press conference
in Bishkek on 23 March, Security Ministry department head
Ikramadin Aitkulov said that Kulov has been charged with
abuse of power while he served as security minister and
deputy premier and with violating the rights and interests of
the state and individual citizens. He said that Kulov is also
suspected of misappropriating some $22,000 that the Security
Ministry had received from unnamed commercial firms. LF

...AS PROTESTS OVER POLL OUTCOME CONTINUE

The OSCE mission
in Bishkek issued a press release on 23 March stressing its
concern over the situation that has arisen in Kyrgyzstan
since the two rounds of voting for a new parliament on 20
February and 12 March as well as over the violations
committed before and during the vote, Interfax and ITAR-TASS
reported. Also on 23 March, some 300 people continued their
protest in the town of Kara-Buura to demand the annulment of
the 12 March parliamentary runoff in that constituency, in
which Kulov was defeated. LF

TAJIKISTAN ELECTS UPPER CHAMBER OF PARLIAMENT

Regional
assemblies in Tajikistan's five electoral districts on 23
March elected five deputies each to the upper house of the
new parliament, Reuters and Asia-Plus Blitz reported. They
include the mayor of Dushanbe, the prosecutor-general, and
the heads of the writers' union and Academy of Sciences. The
remaining eight members of the upper house were named by
President Imomali Rakhmonov last week. LF

UZBEKISTAN TO LIBERALIZE BANKING SYSTEM

President Islam
Karimov has issued a decree intended to increase the
independence of commercial banks and make it easier for them
to issue low-interest loans to farmers and small and medium-
sized businesses, Interfax reported on 23 March. Banks are to
set up a special fund to issue such loans, and the proceeds
from doing so will be tax exempt for five years, provided
they are reinvested in the fund. LF

BELARUS SEEKS COOPERATION ACCORD WITH NATO

Valyantsin
Rybakou, head of the department for international security in
Belarus's Foreign Ministry, told journalists on 23 March that
Belarus is seeking a cooperation agreement with NATO, Belapan
and RFE/RL's Belarusian Service reported. Rybakou noted that
Minsk proposed signing such an accord more than two years
ago, but Brussels has not responded. He proposed that NATO
sign a charter with Belarus similar to those the alliance has
concluded with Russia and Ukraine. Rybakou noted that the
Partnership for Peace program does not fully suit Belarus's
interests since, he argued, it is intended for countries that
want to join the alliance. JM

UKRAINE ASKED TO RELEASE TURKISH FISHERMEN

The Turkish
Foreign Ministry on 23 March summoned the Ukrainian
ambassador to Ankara to protest the killing of a Turkish
fisherman and the sinking of a Turkish boat the previous day
(see "RFE/RL Newsline," 23 March 2000), AP reported. "An
intervention that leads to the loss of life is not an
acceptable matter within international law," the ministry
said in a statement, calling for the immediate release of the
fishermen and their boats. The statement noted that Foreign
Minister Ismail Cem and his Ukrainian counterpart, Borys
Tarasyuk, have agreed to cooperate to prevent such incidents
in future, according to Reuters. Interfax reported that
Tarasyuk proposed to Cem that Kyiv and Ankara hold "immediate
consultations in connection with the violation of Ukraine's
exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea by Turkish fishing
boats." JM

POLAND TO ASSIST UKRAINE WITH REFORMS

Ukrainian Deputy
Premier Yuriy Yekhanurov and Polish Deputy Premier and
Finance Minister Leszek Balcerowicz have signed a
declaration whereby Poland will share its experience with
and provide training for Ukrainian experts in implementing
reforms, Interfax and PAP reported on 23 March. Balcerowicz
told journalists in Kyiv that the areas of assistance
include the reform of the state administration,
privatization of key branches of the economy, the reform of
the pension system, as well as consultations on the
development of small and medium-sized businesses. JM

The Supreme Council has passed in the first
reading an amnesty bill that paves the way for the release of
some 33,000 Ukrainian short-term convicts. The bill, proposed
by the president, primarily applies to juveniles, those with
children under 16 years of age, the elderly, war veterans,
disabled persons, and those suffering from tuberculosis. The
parliament also passed a bill granting tax exemptions on
compensation payments to Ukraine's Nazi slave laborers and
victims of Nazi persecution. It is expected that some 600,000
Ukrainians will receive $2,500-$7,500 each from Germany's
government and industries under a deal concluded between
survivors' groups and Germany the previous day. JM

LITHUANIAN RULING PARTY SPLITS

Just days after a setback in
the local elections, the ruling Conservatives appear to have
split. Thirteen members of the parliament loyal to former
Premier Gediminas Vagnorius have founded a new faction, ELTA
reported on 23 March. The new faction includes Vagnorius,
several former cabinet ministers, and several recently ousted
Conservative Party members. In particular, it criticized the
government's decision to oust the board chairman of state-
owned Taupomasis Bankas (Savings Bank), Romualdas
Visokavicius. According to ELTA, Visokavicius could be
replaced by Algimantas Krizinauskas, a former finance
minister. MH

Leszek Balcerowicz, leader of the Freedom
Union (UW) and finance minister, told Polish Radio on 23
March that "it would be difficult" for the UW leadership to
support the candidacy of Solidarity leader Marian
Krzaklewski in this year's presidential elections.
According to Balcerowicz, the UW electorate's "views,
preferences, and antipathies" determined that viewpoint. JM

WORLD BANK URGES POLAND TO CURB CORRUPTION

The World Bank
has urged Poland to begin fighting corruption, starting at
"the highest levels," Reuters reported on 23 March. "All our
interviewees pointed to corruption at the highest levels of
power as the most serious problem in Poland and said it was
growing," the World Bank said in a report commissioned by
Finance Minister Balcerowicz. The World Bank talked to
parliamentary deputies, officials from the administration and
judiciary, businessmen, academics, and non-government
organizations. It also based the report on newspaper articles
and Interior Ministry and Supreme Audit Chamber reports. The
main problem areas are pay-offs to deputies to back or block
certain laws, irregularities in awarding state orders to
private companies, and manipulations in the privatization
process. JM

CZECH FOREIGNERS LAW TO BE CHANGED

The Czech government's
Council for Human Rights said on 23 March that the new law on
foreigners contravenes international agreements signed by the
Czech Republic in 10 ways, CTK reported. The council notes
that the law contains excessive financial demands for
residency permits and complicates the stay of students and
foreign experts. On 22 March, the government asked the
Interior Ministry to draft an amendment to the law by June.
VG

CZECH JAILS RUNNING OUT OF ROOM

The general director of the
Czech prison service, Kamila Meclova, announced on 22 March
that the country's overcrowded prisons will no longer be
accepting convicts who have been sentenced to two years in
prison or less, "Mlada fronta Dnes" reported. As of 23 March,
any new convicts sentenced to such prison terms will be
temporarily turned away until space becomes available. Czech
prisons now house some 24,000 inmates. In other news, a group
of about 25 Chechen refugees have been peacefully occupying
the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees office in
Prague since 23 March. They say they received an anonymous
telephone death threat from a Russian-speaker, Czech media
reported. VG

GEREMEK SAYS NO STRAIN IN CZECH-POLISH RELATIONS

Polish
Foreign Minister Bronislaw Geremek on 23 March dismissed
recent media reports about a strain in Czech-Polish relations
owing to a spy scandal, CTK reported. The Czech press had
reported earlier in the week that the Polish government
rejected a candidate for the post of military attache at the
Czech Embassy in Warsaw on the grounds that he had engaged in
spying activities in Poland. The alleged Czech spy had been
working in Poland since the 1980s. VG

CORRECTION

"RFE/RL Newsline" incorrectly reported on 23
March that Czech GDP grew by 0.2 percent last year. In fact,
it fell by 0.2 percent.

SLOVAK PARTIES DISCUSS COALITION PROBLEMS

Slovak Prime
Minister Mikulas Dzurinda has submitted a document on
problems within the governing coalition to members of Slovak
Democratic Coalition (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 23 March 2000),
TASR reported on 23 March. The document was drawn up by the
Party of the Democratic Left (SDL). Among other things, the
SDL asserts that the SDK no longer exists as a party, even
though Dzurinda claims that it does. Christian Democratic
Movement leader Jan Carnogursky, whose party is a member of
the SDK, said Dzurinda should accept the country's political
realities. Carnogursky and other parties within the SDK are
proposing that the SDK be turned into a looser six-party
coalition. SDK members are scheduled to discuss the proposal
on 26 March. VG

HUNGARIAN PARLIAMENT DEBATES BILL ON BANNER DISPLAY

Marta
Matrai of the governing Federation of Young Democrats-
Hungarian Civic Party has proposed to the parliament that the
national flag be displayed on all public buildings at all
times, Hungarian media reported on 23 March. Andras Csaky of
the coalition member Democratic Forum said the amendment aims
at strengthening national awareness. Opposition Free Democrat
Imre Mecs replied by saying that "patriotism is an issue of
conscience that produces its opposite when forced." His
remarks were received with "pleasure" by Independent
Smallholder Zsolt Lanyi, who commented that Mecs's comments
"show who is a real Hungarian." MSZ

FIDESZ SUBMITS MEDIA ACT AMENDMENT

Szilard Sasvari, a member
of FIDESZ and chairman of the parliament's cultural and press
committee, has submitted a motion on amending the media law.
In an attempt to resolve the recent dispute between the
coalition and the opposition parties, Sasvari proposed six-
member boards of trustees of public media outlets, instead of
the current eight-member boards. According to the proposal,
each of the six parliamentary groups would nominate one
member of the boards. The strongest coalition party would
provide the chairman of the board, while the deputy chairman
would be nominated by the strongest opposition party. The
opposition Free Democrats signaled earlier that they would
support six-member media boards. MSZ

ETHNIC ALBANIAN MILITANTS PLEDGE POLITICAL STRUGGLE

Unnamed
political representatives of the Liberation Army of Presevo,
Medvedja, and Bujanovac said in a formal statement on 24
March that they "are committed to a political solution [to
the problems of southwest Serbia's Albanian minority] in
cooperation with the international community," AP reported.
The statement did not include a pledge of a unilateral cease-
fire or an offer to disarm as some Western diplomats had
hoped. But in Washington the previous day, State Department
spokesman James Rubin said that "it's an important statement
in moving the problem there from the military to political
sphere." In Gjilan, Januz Musliu of the Political Council for
Presevo, Medvedja, and Bujanovac told Reuters after nine
hours of meetings with U.S. and Kosovar Albanian officials:
"Our stance and our engagement will be in accord with our own
national and international interests, especially with those
of the United States and the North Atlantic Alliance." PM

NATO LEADERS MARK ANNIVERSARY OF KOSOVA CAMPAIGN

NATO
Secretary-General Lord Robertson and Supreme Commander Europe
General Wesley Clark are slated to visit Kosova on 24 March.
They will mark the first anniversary of NATO's bombing
campaign that forced the Serbian leadership to end Operation
Horseshoe, which was the code-name for a campaign launched in
early 1999 to expel the ethnic Albanians who make up some 90
percent of Kosova's population. Robertson and Clark were
originally scheduled to arrive at 9:00 a.m. local time, but
the trip was delayed for what an unnamed NATO official called
"operational reasons." When Reuters asked if that meant
because of security concerns, the official replied: "I won't
go into that." Later, KFOR spokesman Major Nick Naudin said
that the planned trip by the two leaders to the divided city
of Mitrovica has been canceled. Reuters suggested that it
would be an embarrassment for NATO if it could not guarantee
the two men's security there. PM

U.S. OPPOSES PARTITION OF MITROVICA

NATO peacekeepers on 24
March put up signs in parts of the Serb-held area of northern
Mitrovica indicating that those areas are a "confidence zone"
in which all people may move about freely. The zone now
stretches from northern Mitrovica across the bridge over the
Ibar River and into mainly Albanian southern Mitrovica. Local
Serbs told AP, however, that KFOR "will make a terrible
mistake if they tried to enforce the zone. We know their are
doing all this to enable the Albanians to take everything."
The previous day in Geneva, U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine
Albright stressed Washington's opposition to the partition of
the northern Kosova city. PM

ALBANIA CONDEMNS 'EXTREMIST ACTS

'The Albanian government
said in a statement on 24 March that there has been a
"tangible improvement" in the situation of Kosova's ethnic
Albanians since NATO forces occupied the province in June
1999. The government added, however, that "the latest
incidents in Kosova...clearly show that there are still many
difficulties ahead," dpa reported from Tirana. In an apparent
reference to southwestern Serbia, "the Albanian government
declares that it condemns any extremist act by any side.
Albania is ready to contribute to the prevention of such acts
that might plunge Kosova into a new crisis." Yugoslav
President Slobodan "Milosevic and his clique are persistently
trying to destabilize the situation, undermine stabilization
processes, and edge Kosova towards a new chaos," the
government noted. PM

MILOSEVIC HONORS WAR DEAD

Yugoslav President Slobodan
Milosevic placed a wreath near the tomb of the unknown
soldier in the Avala region of Belgrade on 23 March. He wrote
in the guest book: "May there be eternal glory to the heroes
of the fatherland who fell in defense of the freedom and
dignity of their people and [in defense] of their state from
the [threat posed by the] new fascism," "Vesti" reported. The
next day, officially sponsored "anti-NATO rallies" took place
in several municipalities in different parts of Serbia.
Reuters reported from Belgrade, however, that many Serbs
question why the government is using their money to
"celebrate a defeat." Such individuals also called for a
"more dignified" commemoration of the war dead. PM

EU PLEDGES SUSTANTIAL AID FOR MONTENEGRO...

Leaders of the 15
EU member states said in a draft communique on 24 March that
Montenegro must receive considerable economic assistance if
its democratic reforms are to succeed, dpa reported from
Lisbon. "The European Council underlines the urgent need for
substantial assistance to Montenegro in order to ensure the
survival of democratic government and to avoid another crisis
in the region," the statement added. The leaders did not
specify an amount of money but called on relevant EU bodies
to act quickly to find the necessary funds. Elsewhere in the
communique, they leaders said that a "democratic, cooperative
Serbia, living at peace with its neighbors, will be welcome
to join the European family." In the meantime, however,
sanctions will remain in place as a "pressure for democratic
change," the communique added. PM

...CALLS FOR BETTER COORDINATION IN KOSOVA

In their Lisbon
communique of 24 March, the EU leaders added that "the
international community needs a more coherent and action-
oriented strategy for providing economic and political
support to [Kosova] and the region. To this end, [the EU
recognizes] the need to provide support in a much more
coordinated, coherent fashion and to ensure that the efforts
of the Union and its member states receive appropriate
recognition," the statement added. NATO and the UN civilian
administration currently play the key roles in Kosova. PM

HAGUE COURT HIKES BOSNIAN CROAT'S SENTENCE ON APPEAL

The
Hague-based war crimes tribunal on 24 March extended the
prison sentence for Zlatko Aleksovski from two and one-half
to seven years. The tribunal ruled that the initial sentence
reflected neither the fact that he was commander of a prison
camp in 1993 nor the severity of crimes committed there
against Muslim inmates. He is charged with displaying
exceptional cruelty toward prisoners and with using those
inmates as human shields. PM

CROATIAN OPPOSITION LETS BUDGET PASS

Parliamentary deputies
belonging to the Croatian Democratic Community of the late
President Franjo Tudjman and to the far-right Croatian Party
of [Historic] Rights have abstained from an upper-house vote
on the government's budget, RFE/RL's South Slavic Service
reported on 23 March. The two parties have a majority in the
upper house and could have obstructed passage. The budget now
goes to the lower house for consideration. Meanwhile at
Velika Kopanica on the main Zagreb-Lipovac highway, several
hundred refugees and returnees from Slavonia blocked traffic
to protest what they called insufficient budget funding to
enable refugees to return home and rebuild their communities.
PM

FORMER ROMANIAN PRESIDENT SAYS HOT LINE NEVER PASSED
'EXPLORATORY TALKS'

In an interview with Mediafax on 23
March, former President Ion Iliescu said talks with Russia on
setting up a hot line were initiated by the Kremlin, were
"exploratory," and were conducted at "expert, not negotiator,
level." He added that the Supreme Council of National
Defense, which he headed, never discussed or approved the
line, and he described the debate over the line as "clear
electoral diversion whose obvious purpose is to deflect the
attention of people from the country's real problems."
Earlier on 23 March, retired General Vasile Ionel, who was
Iliescu's counselor on defense matters, said that after
"discussions at expert level," Iliescu concluded that the
time for concluding an accord was "not ripe, as long as we
still do not have a [basic] treaty with Russia." MS

ROMANIAN LIBERALS TORN BY CONFLICT

National Liberal Party
(PNL) Chairman Mircea Ionescu-Quintus said on 23 March that a
decision taken by the party's Standing Central Bureau in his
absence from the country last week had infringed on his
powers as PNL chairman. The bureau had designated First
Deputy Chairman Valeriu Stoica as "negotiator with all
[other] parties." Ionescu-Quintus said he may call an
extraordinary PNL congress and announce he will run for
another term. Earlier, he had said he will step down in 2001.
Ionescu-Quintus also said some members of the bureau had
joined the PNL after quitting other parties but had done
little for the PNL, "being concerned only about their
positions." Also on 23 March, the bureau revised its decision
on Stoica to name him as negotiator with only those parties
that are members of the Democratic Convention of Romania,
RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau reported. MS

ROMA PROTEST RACISM IN ROMANIA

Dozens of Roma marched
through downtown Bucharest on 23 March to protest against
racism, AP reported. VG

MOLDOVAN PARLIAMENT APPROVES ELECTORAL LAW CHANGES

The
Moldovan legislature on 23 March passed a series of
amendments to the country's Electoral Code, Basa-Press
reported. Under the amendments, the minimum threshold for
political factions to gain representation in the parliament
has been increased from 4 percent to 6 percent, while the
threshold for independent candidates has been lowered from 4
percent to 3 percent. The amendments also bar "foreign or
rebroadcast television and radio stations, as well as foreign
publications and their satellite newspapers" from running
electoral campaign advertisements. Any candidates who violate
the law will be disqualified. The changes also call for state
television to offer two hours of commercial time to each
candidate "but not more than two minutes a day." VG

BULGARIA'S FOREIGN DEBT DECREASES SIGNIFICANTLY

Bulgaria's
foreign debt has dropped by almost $1 billion since the end
of last year, AP reported, quoting Bulgarian Finance Minister
Muravei Radev. The minister said the country's foreign debt
now totals $9.07 billion; in December it stood at $9.984
billion. The latest figure is equal to about 78 percent of
the country's GDP. He said the government is drafting a law
on containing debt growth for the next three to five years
and reducing it thereafter. In other news, the Bulgarian
cabinet approved four defense cooperation accords with
Romania on 23 March, BTA reported. VG

PUTIN'S RISE TO POWER DELAYS CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM

By Donald N. Jensen

Vladimir Putin's coming to power has sidelined proposals
to reduce the constitutional powers of the Russian
presidency. In fact, an elected Putin administration would be
more likely to deepen the crisis of government by amending
the constitution to further strengthen presidential power.

The Russian Constitution, ratified in December 1993,
provides for an extraordinarily strong chief executive and a
weak legislature and judiciary. Popular support for that
document stemmed from the desire to be permanently rid of the
stalemate between the executive and legislative branches that
had paralyzed the national government for the previous two
years. The strong presidency was tailored for Boris Yeltsin,
who many liberals and Western governments believed to be the
best guarantor of reform. It also reflected both Yeltsin's
desire to maximize his own political power and Russia's
historical and cultural preference for a strong leader.

Despite formally strong presidential powers, the
weakness of Russia's institutions and the rule of law
contributed to the strong personalization of authority and
the chronic difficulty in implementing government decisions.
Yeltsin ruled largely by decree, signing more than 1,000 a
year, many of which were largely ignored. And on many issues,
he ignored the elected State Duma, whose powers, budget,
experience, and professionalism were limited.

Most important, this imbalance allowed businessmen,
regional leaders, and many others to exert disproportionate
pressure on the presidential apparatus. Key government
programs involving the transfer of state assets worth
billions of dollars, such as privatization and the 1995
loans-for-shares auctions, were decided by presidential
decree with the support of the so-called "oligarchs." For
most of his presidency, Yeltsin tried to govern by balancing
these interests. During his final years in office, however,
an exhausted and infirm president was coopted by some of
them.

Changing the constitution to address these problems
would be one answer. Despite the inherent difficulties of
such an undertaking, there have been many proposals to scale
back the presidency. Some plans have suggested tinkering with
succession procedures or the power to declare and wage war.
Others have called for a parliamentary system in which the
legislature would appoint the prime minister and the cabinet
or in which the Duma would appoint a prime minister who had
enhanced powers and selected the government, while the
presidency would be scaled back. Another blueprint provided
for strong powers for the president, albeit diminished
compared with Yeltsin, the introduction of a vice presidency,
and increased autonomy for the government. According to this
scheme, the Duma would have the right to appoint and remove
the prime minister and his ministers.

There have been three major attempts to go forward with
these changes.

The first was in response to Yeltsin's endorsement of
the 1994 invasion of Chechnya. The proposed amendments,
however, failed to gain the necessary two-thirds support in
the Duma.

The second bid occurred in 1997, in response to
Yeltsin's health problems. A broad coalition of parties,
factions, and regional leaders proposed a wide range of
amendments, including proposals addressing the problem of
presidential disability. Yeltsin resisted those proposals,
arguing that it would be premature to amend the constitution
only a few years after it had been adopted. In the end, the
parliament and the president agreed on an antecedent law,
passed in 1998, on the procedures for constitutional
amendment. The system itself, however, remained unchanged.

The third attempt was triggered by the economic crisis
of August 1998. In an effort to gain the Duma's approval of
Viktor Chernomyrdin as prime minister, Yeltsin signaled his
willingness to consider amendments. A pact was drafted, but
Yeltsin backtracked when Chernomyrdin's candidacy failed to
gain approval a second time and a compromise candidate,
Yevgenii Primakov, was approved instead. Subsequent efforts
by Primakov first to revive the pact and later to draft a new
one convinced Yeltsin that Primakov was too independent, and
the prime minister was removed accordingly. Yeltsin conceded,
however, that the constitution needed revision, but only
after the presidential elections in 2000.

Putin's interim presidency, a product of this system,
has halted the momentum for downsizing the executive branch.
The presidential succession was less a genuine transfer of
power than the final act of a months-long drama in which
political and business interests sought to find a successor
to Yeltsin who would protect their interests. The fact that
Putin was both acting president and prime minister during the
three-month transition has further weakened the other federal
structures.

In recent weeks, moreover, Putin has hinted he may try
to reverse the country's decline by seeking additional
powers. He has supported extending the term of the presidency
from four to seven years. The Kremlin has also revived the
idea of directly appointing Russia's governors--their popular
election, introduced in the mid-1990s, was a major factor in
the ebbing of authority from the federal center.

Stronger presidential powers, however, are unlikely to
solve Russia's political problems. More effective would be to
build effective coalitions with the rest of the federal
government and with the regions to ensure better governance
and more enduring popular support. Power-sharing agreements
that fell short of amending the constitution but were
observed by all parties would also help establish the ground
rules of political behavior. Such steps would require,
however, the avoidance of strong-arm tactics and less
reliance on the oligarchs. During his interim presidency, at
least, Putin has been either unwilling or unable to act in
this direction.
The author is associate director of RFE/RL's Broadcasting
Division.